Long-tailed Chinchilla

Chinchilla lanigera

A soft, gray mountain rodent from the Andes of Chile with some of the thickest fur of any land animal.

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About the Long-tailed Chinchilla

Long-tailed chinchillas have bodies 9 to 14 inches long and bushy tails 3 to 6 inches long. Females weigh up to 1.76 pounds, while males weigh about 1 pound. They live only in the Andes of northern Chile, in rocky areas 9,800 to 16,400 feet high, and hide in cracks and holes. They eat seeds, grass, leaves, roots, lichen and moss, and sometimes insects and eggs.^[1]

Quick facts

Scientific name: Chinchilla lanigera^[1]
Size: Body 9 to 14 inches, plus a 3- to 6-inch tail.^[1]
Weight: Females up to 1.76 pounds; males about 1 pound.^[1]
Lifespan: About 10 years in the wild; over 20 in human care.^[1]
Diet: Mostly herbivore. Seeds, grass, leaves, roots, lichen and moss, plus some insects and eggs.^[1]
Habitat: Rocky mountain slopes from 9,800 to 16,400 feet.^[1]
Where it lives: The Andes of northern Chile.^[1]
Group life: Colonies of a few to hundreds. Nocturnal.^[1]
Babies: 1 to 6 young, usually 2 or 3, twice a year.^[1]
Conservation status: Endangered (IUCN Red List, assessed 2025).^[2]

Fun facts

Up to 60 hairs can grow from one chinchilla hair follicle.^[1]
Chinchilla teeth are dark orange.^[1]
Baby chinchillas are born well developed.^[1]

Vocabulary

follicle: A tiny pocket in the skin that a hair grows from.
colony: A large group of animals of one kind that live together.
lichen: A crusty growth made of a fungus and algae living together.
nocturnal: Active mainly at night.
endangered: A conservation label meaning a species faces a very high risk of dying out in the wild.

See it in person

Smithsonian's National ZooWashington, D.C. · Small Mammal HouseSee this animal on the zoo's website ↗

These zoos had this animal when we gathered our information, but animals sometimes move. Check the zoo's website or contact the zoo before you visit.

Sources

[1] Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. “Long-tailed chinchilla.” https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/long-tailed-chinchilla (accessed 2026-10-08)
[2] IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. “Chinchilla laniger (Long-tailed Chinchilla).” https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/4652/271314552 (accessed 2026-10-08)